Grudging Respect
by Shiruba Neko
Summary: The day had started normally enough, but then things started happening. Now Scar and Ed are going to have to work together if they want things to be back the way they were before. They're both doomed. No pairings. COMPLETE
1. The Change

**_Chapter Title: _**_The Change_

**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Clara, Al, Mustang & crew_

**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!_

**_Spoilers: _**_Um…not unless you don't know who Scar is…_

**_Warnings: _**_Cursing, mild violence, mild lip-rape_

**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, Scar would be in every episode. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP_

**_A/N: _**_Well…I had a plot bunny one day while I was drawing, and it turned into this. I hope I didn't inadvertently copy somebody else's plot…if I did, I'm really sorry. This is pretty much my first forray into the FMA section. _Constructive_ criticism is always welcome and greatly appreciated! I'm going to be an author, so I'm always looking to improve my writing. :) Enjoy!

* * *

_

Edward Elric was not having a good day. Oh, it had started normally enough…he and Al had just been walking down the street, minding their own business, when out of bloody nowhere comes Scar. And Scar had been trying to kill him. Again. Now, Ed was not in the mood to get beaten up or killed that day, so instead of trying to fight, he tore off as fast as he could, after telling Al to go get some backup. So he had run for a while, cutting through alleyways in a futile attempt to lose the infamous alchemist killer, before discovering that he had run himself right into a dead end. And now they were fighting. Again. Nope, not a very good day at all.

* * *

The warm summer sun shone brightly down upon Central. Down upon the streets, upon the alleyways, and down upon a happily chirping bluebird perched on an alley wall. The bluebird was happy because it was a beautiful, peaceful morning. Unfortunately for the bluebird, it had picked a very bad wall to be sitting on; the reason for this became apparent as a bright red glow from below, accompanied by an immense dent in the wall the bird was sitting on, frightened it away. The poor bird was scarred for life, and would ever be afraid of the color red. 

The source of the bird's fear was a certain 'cursed' arm, which was attached to a very tall man whose name was Scar. Scar was not happy. Actually, Scar was never happy, but at the moment he was even more not happy than usual. This was because Fullmetal had dodged his attack again. There was an advantage to being small and fast after all. But Scar knew that it was only a matter of time before Fullmetal got tired and clumsy, and then he would face the judgement of God.

Ed dove out of the way of Scar's Arm O' Doom, his thoughts running angrily through his head, '_This was _supposed_ to be my day _off!' He slashed his automail-arm-turned-blade at Scar, only managing to cut his leg before he was forced onto the defensive again. But at least he had scored _some_ kind of hit against the alchemist killer, even though it didn't even slow him down at all, '_Dammit…Al better get back here soon with some help…I don't know how long I can last on my own…_" And it was in that moment, that crucial moment, that he stumbled over a stone on the ground. Scar saw his chance and took it, and his glowing red arm came within inches of Ed's face…before an alchemical blast smashed into him, throwing him backwards about ten feet before he crash-landed into the hard concrete ground with a small, irrepressible grunt of pain. Ed was surprised; it certainly hadn't been _his_ attack.

"Fullmetal…" Scar growled as he pushed himself up off the ground, eyes blazing.

"Oi, that wasn't me!" Ed wondered if Al and the requested backup had arrived, but there were no more attacks, no familiar shouting…it was as though the blast had come out of nowhere…

Scar got to his feet, albeit a bit unsteadily at first, and readied himself for another charge. Ed did likewise, and the two stood at a standstill for a moment. Just as they were about to resume their battle, they were distracted by two large rock spikes sprouting out of the ground, one directly behind each of them. They were even further distracted when those spikes spontaneously grew thick, rib-like protrusions that circled around each of them and bound them, arms to their sides and legs together, tightly to the spikes, which then proceeded to grow taller until the two confused fighters' feet were dangling nearly a foot off the ground.

"What did you do?" Scar shouted furiously, struggling against the tight stone bonds to no avail.

"I didn't do it! You think I'd tie myself to a rock!"

"This is alchemy, and I see no other alchemists around."

"Well obviously there must be one somewhere. It's not like there would be much point for me to do this. Can't you just use your arm to get rid of it or whatever?"

"You think I haven't _tried_?"

"Now, now, boys…enough of this petty squabbling," a silky voice carried through the alley from somewhere above them. They looked up to see a black figure jump down, catlike, from the roof of one of the buildings.

The figure stood up, revealing itself to be a tall, pale woman with short black hair and an outfit that reminded Ed very much of Psiren, the Aquaroyan theif…minus the ridiculous mask-hat. She might have been quite pretty, but it was marred by the cruel and malevolent smirk across her face. Ed didn't like her. Neither did Scar. Unfortunately for the trapped Ishbalan, he was the one she stalked over to, her eyes holding a glint of something…predatory. It made him reeeeally uncomfortable, and Scar did not like being uncomfortable. So, out of instinct, he attempted to use his right arm to blast away the stone bindings around him. It didn't work…it hadn't worked the first time he had tried, either. You could barely see the red glow if you looked hard at the stone over his right arm, but the woman saw it, and her pearly teeth glistened as she pulled back her lips in a twisted smile.

"None of that now, my little Ishbalan," her voice sickened him almost as much as her words did.

"Wha-" he began, but was cut off when a surge of energy traveled up the stone spike and ran through him. His nerves were on fire; he could feel every inch of him crying out in agony, but he refused to show it. Instead he clenched his teeth in a feral snarl, rivulets of sweat running down his face, glaring at the woman until the energy ceased to flow and he was left hanging from his bindings, breathing heavily.

Ed's eyes widened exponentially, and he couldn't help but feel a teeny bit sorry for Scar before he quashed the feeling down, thinking, '_This is _Scar_! Famed murderer of State Alchemists who's been trying to kill me all morning! Why should I be feeling sorry for him? I'm too sympathetic for my own good…_"

Meanwhile, the woman turned from the glaring Scar, "Every time you use that arm of yours, that's what will happen. I would suggest that you don't do it again, and you'll listen to my advice if you know what's good for you."

"Just who the crap are you?" Ed, not liking the fact that he was being ignored, shouted at the woman.

"Oh, how rude of me," she smirked, "The name's Clara, otherwise known as the Altering Alchemist."

"Never heard of you."

"My dear little boy…that's because I went AWOL the year before you joined the military. They never found me, and they don't like to admit their mistakes. According to them, I don't exist."

Ed had twitched at her mention of 'little boy', but held his temper for the moment, "I don't suppose you still have your pocketwatch, then?"

"Of course I have it. I wouldn't have let them take it from me alive," she flipped her hand nonchalantly, "But, I digress…I'm not here to chat, boy. You and he," she nodded her head in the glowering Scar's direction briefly, "have been at the root of a great many difficulties for me lately. And today I saw my chance to kill two birds with one stone, and I took it."

"I've never seen or heard of you before…how can I have caused you any 'difficulties'?" Ed was stalling now…certainly Al and the backup would find them soon…

"Not directly, boy, but your actions have come in my way many a time since you joined the military. As have yours ever since you began killing State Alchemists, _Scar_."

"What have you been doing that I've been getting in the way of, then?" Ed was beginning to worry; this woman didn't look like she'd be doing anything pleasant with Scar and him.

"Ah, ah, boy," she waved a finger at him in admonishment, "I can tell stalling for time when I see it. I don't plan on going off on a monolaugue while you wait for someone to come to your rescue. I'll dispose of you both in a proper manner shortly. But first…" Clara whirled to face Scar, and began to walk over to where he was bound. He gave her a furious glare, but she didn't seem deterred at all. She stopped about a foot from him, and an array stamped onto the palm of her glove glowed as she touched the ground and caused a circular section of the ground in front of Scar to rise up. She used it as a stepping stool and Scar found himself inches from her pale face, much to his unhappiness.

"Ah, what a handsome devil you are," she whispered in his ear, "A pity that you won't be around much longer…" she lifted one of her hands to trace along the side of his face, and he jerked away with a growl. Then she began to lean closer, and an absolutely horrified expression crossed Scar's face as he realized what was about to happen. Eyes widening in panic, he thrashed against his stone bonds in a futile attempt at escape, but she snatched his face in her ungloved hand, her nails digging into his skin deep enough to draw blood. And then…she kissed him.

Ed's face turned bright red, his mouth dropped open, and his thoughts became a confused jumble as his brain could no longer do anything but scream '_What the FUCK?_'. It was like some kind of terrible scene of gory violence had just occurred, and no matter how much it horrified him, _he couldn't look away_. But what struck him most about the whole thing was the fleeting instant when he saw Scar's eyes. The usually emotionless red orbs were wide and so full of desparation to be _anywhere_ but where he was then, that the little twinge of sympathy that Ed had squashed earlier grew exponentially bigger, and when Clara finally moved away from Scar's face, Edward Elric snapped.

"WHAT THE CRAP WAS THAT, YOU PSYCHO? THAT WAS…WAS JUST…_WRONG_!"

"Nobody asked _you_, boy," Clara snapped back at him before turning back to Scar and saying silkily, "That was fun, ne Scar-kun?"  
He raised his now narrowed eyes to her, voice blazing with fury, "May Ishbala have mercy on your soul."

She only smirked cruelly before stepping back, "If that's the way you want to play, then…" and the alchemical energy once again surged up around Scar. The second time was much, much worse, and the already injured Ishbalan could not suppress a scream of agony. When it stopped, black spots danced in his vision and everything went fuzzy. In less than a few seconds he had fallen unconscious, his harsh, ragged breathing the only thing showing that he remained alive.

* * *

Al ran through the maze of alleyways as fast as a giant suit of armor could, followed by Mustang and his entire regiment. _Why_ did Niisan always manage to wind up in some dark alley when he was fighting Scar? _Why_? Al then heard a welcome thing; Ed yelling his head off about something; it was too garbled by distance and walls to make out what he was yelling about, but at least that meant that he was still alive. A few seconds later, Al heard something else; an agonized scream that sounded like…Scar? This made him exceedingly nervous; Ed had never hurt Scar enough to make him scream before…actually he had never heard of _anyone_ hurting Scar enough to make him scream before. Something was wrong here. Very, very wrong. Just how wrong became painfully obvious a few corner-turns later, when the whole group screeched to a dead stop in utter surprise. There was Edward, and there was Scar, and both of them were bound with stone from their shoulders to their ankles. Scar was unconscious and looked like he was in almost critical condition, Ed looked like he was in a kind of horrified shock, and there was some woman whom Al had never seen before, standing in between the two and cackling like a hyena.

"Niisan!" Al began to run over.

"Al!" Ed turned his head as far as he could to see his younger brother, "Be careful!"

"So, your friends found you after all, boy," Clara had stopped laughing, "Looks like I'm running short of time. I'll have to settle for less than what I initially planned. But I can't have them interrupting the process, so…" the circle on her glove glowed again as she created a solid stone wall that separated her, Ed, and Scar from Al and the military, "That should hold them for long enough," she quickly began drawing a transmutation circle beneath Ed's feet, then when it was finished drew the same one beneath Scar. Meanwhile every alchemist behind the wall was hitting it with everything they had, and although they were making headway, it wasn't enough to stop the Altering Alchemist from activating her arrays.

The two arrays shone with bright yellow light, which began to creep up onto Ed's limbs, twining and shifting like smoke. The same was happening to Scar, but Ed was no longer concentrating on him. He barely even noticed when the stone pillar he was bound to released him to drop on the concrete ground. He was far too focused on the fact that as he was engulfed by the alchemical light, he had the oddest sensation of his bones shrinking, lengthening, changing position…skin stretching along with bone…it was, no doubt, the strangest thing he had ever felt before in his life. When it was over, he simply lay on the ground, and noticed fuzzily as Clara began to bend over him that she seemed so much bigger than she had before and his clothes didn't seem to fit him anymore…and then everything exploded around him as Mustang and his men finally broke through the wall in an immense blast that completely destroyed the alleyway and sent Ed (and Scar) flying; over the other end of the alley and into a pile of garbage that broke their fall and prevented them from breaking their backs. Unfortunately the explosion had sent quite a few large pieces of rocky rubble flying as well, and one of these smashed into the pile in a veritable explosion uneaten food and cans and other such things as you would find in a pile of alley garbage. The two were knocked from their temporary 'perch' and tumbled down until they were stopped by the rest of the rubble that had landed on the ground. Then they were buried by other pieces of rubble and thankfully avoided being crushed by a slab that had fallen over them and provided a sheltering 'cave' of sorts. Of course, by now Ed was knocked out as well. And so they lay, unresponsive, under the pile of rubble as worried searchers combed through the alleys searching for…well, they were looking for Ed, anyway.

After Clara had run off, using the explosion as cover for her escape, all they had found of Ed were his coat, shirt, and silver pocketwatch lying where he had been during the transmutation, and his pants and shoes a little ways away. Of course, this had pretty much sent Al into hysterics ("Niisan is out there somewhere without any _clothes_ on?"), and Havoc and Breda had snickered until they had been smacked upside the head by Hawkeye for being tactless. They had found Scar's clothes as well, but they were more concerned about Ed's fate than his. And so they searched desperately for the missing Fullmetal Alchemist. However, they didn't search under the pile of rubble that was certainly too small to cover a human, even one so small as Ed. However, it was just the right size to cover two…cats.

* * *

**_A/N:_** _I'm so sorry Scar-san! I didn't mean to be so evil to you, it just sort of happened! FORGIVE MEEEEE! T.T Yeah, if you hadn't noticed, I love Scar. He's the main character here (even though this chapter was from Ed's POV). He's the one I'm writing the story for. He's far too cool a character to be as ignored as he is (or to be simply cast in nearly every fanfiction as the random villain who has no motive other than to be evil). _


	2. Kitty!

**_Chapter Title: _**_Kitty!_

**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Liz, Liz's brother_

**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!_

**_Spoilers: _**_Nope._

**_Warnings: _**_Cursing, scary little girls_

**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, Basque Gran would have died a lot sooner than he did. Unfortunately I don't own it. XP_

**_A/N: _**_Thanks to all of you for your reviews. They made me very happy. I'll answer them at the end of every chapter, 'kay? Now, don't expect all updates to be this fast; I'm a very sporadic writer, and I can be very, very slow sometimes. This chapter is shorter than the first, but it's still almost 4 pages long._

"regular speech"

'_thoughts_'

cat speech-

* * *

Scar awoke with a groan, wondering why his head hurt so much, and why it was so dark and dusty and…smelly? Something smelled like a garbage dump, and the terrible stench did nothing for his head. He struggled to clear his muddled thoughts, trying to remember what had happened that had landed him here…wherever 'here' was. He remembered fighting…red coat and blonde hair…so he had been fighting Fullmetal, and then…pain…stone…black figure…trappedTRAPPEDPAINTRAPPEDPAINPAINPAINTRAPPED! In his half-conscious state Scar attempted to surge to his feet as his fragmented memories caused him to panic, but found that he was blocked by stone in all directions, throwing him further into his state of alarm, '_Trappedcan'tescapemustescapetrappedstonebindingcan'tgetawaynotrappednogetawaynoSTAYAWAYTRAPPED-_' 

NO!- as Scar shouted the last word out loud, and the sound of his own voice stopped his panic almost immediately and he stopped thrashing about, although he could still feel his heart pounding rapidly. He gritted his teeth; now that the adrenaline was seeping away, he could feel every part of him aching in pain. As his thoughts became clearer, he remembered what had happened, although he wished he didn't.

Thrice-damned alchemist…- he snarled to himself, then stopped. There was something…strange about his voice, although he couldn't quite tell what it was. And he felt different somehow, as though he had been taken apart and put together wrong; his senses also felt much sharper than normal. He dismissed the feeling for the moment and began to inspect his surroundings. From the looks of things, he was buried under a giant pile of rocks, which had only failed to crush him on account of a large slab a few inches above his head that created a kind of cave. He was interrupted in his musings by a low groaning sound behind him that caused him to whirl around quickly in something close to fear…at least, he attempted to whirl. He stumbled somewhere along the way, almost falling over, and once again he felt the odd feeling of his bones being in the wrong places. But he forgot it as he stared at what was behind him.

It was a cat. A really big cat; although it was smaller than he was, it was still almost half his size. That was definitely not normal. It was a yellow tabby, although both its right front leg and left hind leg were steel grey; at second glance Scar determined that it was not an adult cat, but more of an adolescent kitten. It looked fairly scuffed up, and shook its head before opening its eyes slowly. They were golden. Scar began to have a sneaking suspicion, which was confirmed when it opened its mouth to mew. Except that Scar understood the mew. And recognized the voice behind it.

Erg…my head…- said the kitten.

Scar's eyes widened, -Fullmetal?-

The kitten's eyes snapped up in alarm, then abruptly got even bigger than Scar's eyes, -S-Scar? You're a…a…-

Scar began to get a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. Slowly, he looked down at his hands…only to see light tan paws, his right 'arm' covered in black smudges that only vaguely looked like the alchemic array that was normally located there. He looked backwards over his shoulder, seeing more tan fur and a tail. He blinked once or twice, as the fact that he was now a cat slowly sank in.

What the hell? _I'm_ a cat!- Scar was jolted out of his reverie by Fullmetal's surprised voice, glancing over he saw the alchemist-turned-cat pacing back and forth as well as the limited space allowed, muttering to himself, -No way…no _fuckin'_ way…that's what the transmutation was, but what did she do so that it wasn't human transmutation?…'Altering Alchemist' was her military name, but dammit, what did she _do_?-

Scar snorted inwardly at the muttering Fullmetal, turning his attention instead to the walls of the 'cave', looking for a way out that wouldn't require the moving of the rubble, which he was no longer physically able to move due to his current state. He was going to find that bitch, and he was going to kill her, no matter how long he had to search. She was going to _pay_, in this world and the next, he was almost certain. Her fate once he was done with her was up to the will of Ishbala. She had better start praying.

**15 Minutes Later…**

Scar was on the verge of leaping over and snapping Fullmetal's neck; if the array on his arm still worked, Edward Elric would have probably ceased to exist some time ago. The boy had yet to stop muttering, and Scar had yet to find a way out. And the muttering, combined with the still-present stench of garbage, was really beginning to grate on the Ishbalan's nerves, which were extremely thin to begin with.

And what about my arm and leg? They still feel like automail to me, but they look like regular cat legs. How could that possibly wor- Ed was cut off as Scar reached one paw over and cuffed him on the head. Hard. -OW! What was that for?-

Cease your incessant heathen mutterings and put your energy to some use, Fullmetal. Look for a way out of this blasted pile of rocks.- Scar hissed before stalking to the wall farthest from Ed to comb over it yet again for any gaps large enough for him to get through.

Ed stuck his tongue out at Scar's back before turning to his side of the wall, muttering a quick -Bully- before beginning to search. Being smaller, he was able to fit into one gap that Scar had passed over, but it narrowed to barely a sliver within a few inches. However, the sliver was like a window to the outside, since that was where it led. He saw that the pile of rubble was located in an alley that looked like it had direct access to the street about twenty feet away. Now, if only there were some people nearby…aha! There! A little girl, maybe five years old or so, and accompanied by what looked like her older brother, perhaps seventeen. The girl had broken away from her brother and run down the alley, giggling.

"Ca' catch me!" she shouted back, as her brother rolled his eyes and jogged after her. Ed grinned; there wouldn't be another chance like it.

Oi, Scar! I believe I've discovered our ticket out!-

Hn. Elaborate.-

No time, just yowl as loud as you can!-

What _are_ you talking about, Fullmetal?- Scar growled, irritated with the commanding attitude of the young alchemist.

Do you want out of here or not? Hurry, they're starting to leave!- and with that, Ed proceeded to yowl, very loudly. Scar growled and flattened his ears, trying to muffle out the terrible sound. But despite Scar's lack of help, Ed's little spur-of-the-moment plan worked.

"Kitty, niisan! Kitty!" the little girl ran over to the pile of rubble, "Undew hewe! Kitty's stuck," she made a sad face, "Niisan, help the kitty! Pwetty please?"

The older boy gave a long-suffering sigh, "Yeah, Liz, fine. I'll get 'im out. Stand back, now."

Ed grinned triumphantly at Scar as the boy began to shift the rubble. At last there was a big enough hole for the two to escape. But before they could get out, the boy's hand reached in, groped around in the 'cave' before latching on to the scruff of Scar's neck and dragging him out.

Put me down you insolent boy!- Scar hissed, twisting in the boy's iron grip, attempting unsuccessfully to scratch him.

"Uh…Liz, I don't think you want this kitty…"

"Ya-_huh_!" Liz shouted, "I wanna keep him an' name him…uh…Fluffy!"

Scar stopped moving abruptly out of shock, and inside the rubble he could hear Fullmetal laughing. But Ed's laughter was his downfall, as Liz's eyes brightened and she reached into the rubble and grabbed onto him.

"Yay! Another kitty! I wanna name her Muffin!" Liz shouted gleefully, hugging poor Ed to her chest so tight he could barely breathe. He stopped laughing right away after her proclamation, an expression of abject terror crossing his face.

I'm not a girl!- he shrieked, thrashing in Liz's bear-hug as she began to skip out of the alley followed by her brother, who was still holding onto poor Scar's neck, towards their home…and the certain doom of Ed and Scar.

* * *

**_A/N:_**_ Heeheehee…I'm so mean to them. But this chapter was a more lighthearted mean, y'know. So I have no problem with cackling evilly about it. Anyway, now I'll answer reviews._

_Priestess kurumi inu's sister: Cacklecacklecackle! Yes I did, yes I did! -dances about- Really, yeah I did. It's not like they need them if they're cats, anyway. Sorry about the cursing; that's just how I write, and Ed _does_ have a foul mouth…I'll use a different word in the future if you want._

_ShyLight: Thanks. :)_

_PhantomAlchemist: Hehehe…I heard someone else use the phrase and I loved it so much I just had to put it in there. Anyway, I found that there _was_ another character-turns-cat story out there, and I'm trying to keep my plot as far away from theirs as possible. But maybe I might put Mustang in there later. He's cool (but not as cool as Scar!)_


	3. Tea Party DOOM

**_Chapter Title: _**_Tea Party DOOM_

**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Liz, Liz's brother, Liz's mother_

**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!_

**_Spoilers: _**_Nope._

**_Warnings: _**_Cursing, scary little girls_

**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, this fanfic would be part of it. Unfortunately I don't own it. XP_

**_A/N: _**_Beh. I hate QuickEdit. It won't let me do double punctuation or put my little -'s as the first thing in a paragraph. Beh._

"regular speech"

'_thoughts_'

cat speech-

* * *

This is _your fault_, Fullmetal...- Scar, aka Fluffy, growled.

I didn't know this would happen! She stole _my_ dignity _too_, you know. Even more than yours! She thinks I'm a _girl_!- Ed, aka Muffin, defended his position valiantly.

The hapless pair had been taken back to Liz's home, and were immediately carried to her room and locked in with her. Her brother was left to explain to their parents why there were now two cats in the house, while Liz…played. Playing as in a good old fashioned game of 'Dress Up The Cats In Doll Clothes And Play House'. Scar was currently decked out in a button-up white shirt, blue overcoat, socks, boots, and a top hat that was painfully smashed down over his ears. Poor Ed was much worse off. Liz was firmly convinced in her five-year-old mind that he was a girl, and as such had forced him into a frilly pink dress, ballerina slippers, and a pink bonnet with purple polka-dots. Of course, seeing as how they were cats, nothing fit right and it was highly uncomfortable for both of them, especially the shoes and hats. When she was finished with them, she draped a blanket around her shoulders, then dragged them out from under the bed where they had attempted to hide while she was distracted and dropped them in the corner of the room where they were trapped and couldn't run away.

The terror that was Liz proclaimed loudly, "Now, I'm going to be the Pwincess, an' you," she pointed to Ed, "awe going to be the Queen, an' you," she pointed to Scar, "awe going to be the King. That means you'we my pwetend mommy an' daddy!" At this statement, Scar and Ed each gave the other a very odd glance and edged away from each other as far as possible. Liz continued, "An' we'we going to have a woyal tea pawty! I just have to go get cups an' the teapot, so I'll be wight back!" she ran out of the room, closing the door behind her and thus crushing any hope of escape for the moment; however, this did give Ed a chance to unsuccessfully attempt the removal of the horrid pink clothing.

Scar moved to the closed window as best he could in his little 'outfit', and after several attempts at jumping onto the ledge were foiled by 'those bloody boots', finally made it and stared out onto the street. The alley was really not very far from the house they were in; only a few houses to the left of it actually. He could see the entrance to it…and the blue uniforms of the military as a group of them headed in. He flicked his tail, -Fullmetal.-

Ed looked up briefly from his struggle with the bonnet, -What do you want?-

Scar replied indifferently, -The military seems to be searching for you.-

That got Ed's attention. He scrambled up onto the window ledge, nearly knocking Scar off and receiving a glare for it. -Why didn't you say so in the first place? Are they looking this way?- Ed put his front paws up against the glass and shouted towards the search party, -HEY! OVER HERE! LOOK THIS WAY! HEEEYY!- Of course, none of the military searchers could hear him at all, and if they did, they thought nothing of what, to them, was a cat's meaningless yowling.

Seeing how utterly useless Ed's shouting was, Scar flattened his ears against his skull to muffle the noise and growled, -Stop that screeching at once, Fullmetal.- When he was ignored, Scar repeated himself louder and more threateningly. Still, Ed continued to shout. So Scar cuffed him on the head again. Ed took a distracted retaliatory swipe (which missed by a mile) and continued shouting. Scar's patience was at an absolute end. With a snarl, the furious Ishbalan again cuffed Ed, this time so hard that the younger 'cat' fell off the window ledge and onto the floor with an audible 'thump'.

Now Ed directed his shouting at Scar as he attempted to get back onto the ledge, -Why are you stopping me? I need to get their attention!-

Scar knocked him off the ledge again with a hiss, this time jumping down as well and using his paws to pin Ed to the floor. The young alchemist thrashed and shouted, attempting to break free, but it was not hard for the much larger and stronger cat to hold him in place. But then, somehow, Ed managed to twist his head around and bite Scar's left foreleg. That was the _last straw_. -FULLMETAL!- Scar practically roared as he swiped at Ed's face with claws extended, leaving three, thin, bleeding scratches across his cheek. It can be noted with some irony that it was Scar's _right_ paw that inflicted the scratches. At any rate, this was finally enough to shut Ed up; he stilled almost instantly and glared up at Scar, golden eyes wide with a mixture of anger and desperation. Scar didn't notice, as he was far too angry by now to care. He snarled, -Stupid _child_. If you had _any_ sense in your head at _all_ you would see that your noise is absolutely useless. Not only are they be unable to hear you, even if they _could_ they would pay no attention. If they _did_ find themselves interested enough to investigate your screeching, they would _not_ recognize you. The _only_ thing you are accomplishing with your foul racket is giving _me_ a headache. I will let you up now, but if you begin again I _will_ be forced to knock you out.- Scar removed his paws from on top of Ed and began to walk away, then turned his head, eyes narrowed and voice cold, -Consider yourself warned, Fullmetal.- He then jumped back onto the window ledge and looked out in silence. Ed didn't move from where he lay, and he seemed to be in a bit of shock from the outburst; it was only very, very rarely that Scar completely lost his temper like that. And so for the next few minutes a tense and awkward silence reigned. Until…

"I'm back, King Fluffy an' Queen Muffin!" Liz skipped into the room, carrying in her arms three cups and a teapot, all made of tin. "Mommy an' Daddy said that I could only keep you fow today," she made a sad face while both Scar and Ed felt a rush of relief, "So we'll have to pway lots an' lots today!" The relief, however, was short-lived.

Liz set up the three cups in a triangle on the floor, with the teapot in the middle, and carried Ed and Scar to their respective 'seats'. The two of them had decided, individually of each other, to just bear whatever was to come; after all, there was barely half a day left until they were free of this house for good. However, the resolution was to be put to the test in some of the most terrible ways imaginable.

**Half an hour later…**

'_If that…that _monster_ shoves my face into that cup one more time…_' Scar thought grimly, leaving the sentence unfinished as he could think of no punishment terrible enough. And for Scar, that's saying something. Yes, the 'woyal tea pawty' was still going, and to the uttermost thanks of both Ed and Scar Liz seemed to finally be becoming bored with it. Thank goodness for the relatively short attention spans of young children. But 'not quite short enough', was the general feeling that pervaded the room, however. Fortunately for Liz, Scar's unfinished threat would not be carried out; after a grand total of 56 cups of invisible tea between the three of them, the little girl finally decided that she was done.

"Okay, it's time fow the pawty to be ovew," Liz said brightly, "Now it's time fow anothew game! How about…pet doctow! I'll be the doctow, an' you can be the patients, okay?" as she finished speaking, she scooped up Ed and extended his right foreleg, "Oh no, you have a bwoken awm, Muffin! You need a cast!" she dumped him unceremoniously onto the floor, ran to her clothes drawers, and began to dig through them.

Ed groaned, -At least the tea party is over…how could anything be worse?-

But he spoke too soon. Within seconds, Liz had returned with a white sock, which she tied into a messy and far too tight knot around Ed's 'broken arm'. Then she turned her attention onto Scar.

**Three Hours Later…**

The game of doctor had ended, leaving both Ed and Scar covered in makeshift sock bandages to the point where they could barely move. Then had come possibly the worst game yet; 'Kitty Wedding'. Neither of the two could even look at each other after that one. Then came the most painful game of the day, a game known as 'Throw Kitty On The Bed And See How High He Bounces'. Then there was Tag (aka Chase Kitty Around The Room). It was _horrible_, all of it, and there didn't seem to be any sort of end in sight. But finally, _finally_, they saw the light at the end of the tunnel. It was in the form of Liz's mother telling the still-energetic girl that it was time to get ready for bed. And to do this, she had needed to open the door. Scar and Ed took their chance while it was still there, and bolted as fast as they could out of the Room of a Thousand Horrors. They were found by Liz's brother, who gave them a sympathetic look and took the doll clothes and the odd sock bandage off of them. Shortly afterwards, it was time at last for them to escape for good.

"Say 'bye' to the kitties now, Liz," said Liz's mother as she began to open the front door, but not nearly fast enough for the poor, abused 'cats'.

"B-but I d-don' wa-annaaa!" Liz whined and sniffled. Neither Scar nor Ed felt the least bit sorry for her.

"We've been through this before, Liz. We can't keep any kitties," said Liz's mother sternly, "Now say 'bye'."

"O-oka-ay…B-bye Fluffy! Bye M-muffin!" Liz waved as the door was finally opened and the relieved pair streaked out into the night. They had barely survived…their Tea Party DOOM!

* * *

**_A/N:_**_ That was fun, yes?  
__Crowds: YES!  
__Dangerous enough?  
__Crowds: Nooooo!  
__Didn't think so. Anyway, time to answer reviews!_

_PhantomAlchemist: Poor, poor Ed. -cackles evilly-_

_Lunatic Pandora1: Hehehe…funny._

_Scar's fangurl: There aren't nearly enough of them, are there? You've got some nice fanfics about him yourself._


	4. Summer Storm

**_Chapter Title: _**_Summer Thunderstorm_

**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Al_

**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!_

**_Spoilers: _**_Nope._

**_Warnings: _**_cursing_

**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, Scar would definitely not be so ignored in the merchandise. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP_

**_A/N: _**_Ugh, filler chapter, sorry. I've got some basic ideas for what I want to happen, but I'm trying to get them into sequence. By the way, I've got pictures up of Kitty!Scar and Kitty!Ed on my Homepage (link in profile). They're in the section marked 'Gallery', if you want to see. I'll get the next chapter out as soon as I can. _

"regular speech"

'_thoughts_'

cat speech-

* * *

It was wet, it was windy, and it was very uncomfortable inside the old wooden box. Ed had decided that he would now feel a lot sorrier for all those stray cats that Al kept hiding in his armor. Scar just stared out into the storm and scowled, thinking on how he had come to be temporarily trapped in a wooden crate with someone that he hated and wanted dead.

* * *

Shortly after the two escaped from the terror named Liz, they found themselves in the alley where they had originally been when they had woken up to find themselves as cats. A few military guards were still there, but they seemed to be mostly for show. However, Ed got all excited because surely they would be on the lookout for him.

Despite Scar's growl of warning, he sprinted towards them, mewing loudly, -Heeyy! It's me! I've found you!- But poor Ed's relief turned abruptly on its tail as the two bored soldiers began to absentmindedly throw rocks at him, one of which hit its target. -Ow! What are you doing that for? Stoppit!- he yowled as he retreated back out of range, where Scar had wisely stayed. As Ed stopped in front of him, panting and sporting a new bruise on his left shoulder, the Ishbalan's red eyes just seemed to shout 'I told you so, you brainless twit'.

Scar kept an indifferent expression as Ed turned around to shout promises of retribution at the now laughing soldiers, -So much for your plan of action, Fullmetal. What do you suggest now? Going to that woman and asking her very nicely to change us back?-

Ed gave him a venomous glare, -Shut up, Scar. I don't see _you_ suggesting anything.- When Scar remained silent, Ed continued, -Anyway, I think that if we stick around here long enough, somebody intelligent is bound to come along. I mean, it can't be that difficult to recognize you, even if you are a cat. You've still got your scar, red eyes, and arm array, _and_ the military is after you. As soon as the shift changes…-

Scar gave a cat yawn to show what he thought of _that_, -But then I would be the one that they were aiming the rocks at. And I have no intention of getting captured when all I can do to defend myself is scratch someone's arm. But I certainly don't care if you plan on waiting here for however long it takes for someone to recognize you. I'm going to go find that bitch and make her pay for this indignity.- He began to walk away purposefully.

Ed snapped his head up and shouted after him, -Hey! You can't go off and leave me here!-

Scar turned back nonchalantly, -Oh?-

Ed frantically rifled through his head for an excuse. He really didn't want to be all alone, and if the only option for company was Scar, then he'd just have to deal with it being Scar. Better than being stuck as a cat by himself. -Er…I mean…how would you know where to look? Or fight her? You don't know anything about her other than that she can make big stone restraints and turn people into cats. And your right arm doesn't work, so how would you do anything?-

Scar raised an eyebrow, -And you're saying that _you_ know all of this? I highly doubt it.-

Ed gave his trademark grin of confidence, or at least as best as he could with a cat's facial structure, -No, I don't. But I know where to go if I want to find out.-

Scar sat down, a slightly interested expression crossing his features briefly,-Continue.-

Ed silently gave a sigh of relief; it looked like Scar wasn't going to leave after all, -The Library. I know where everything is in there, too. Including military records. I could find the info on this 'Clara' in next to no time.-

Scar pondered on this for a moment. Fullmetal did have a point; he really wouldn't be able to fight in this state. Two against one was better odds, and add the information that Fullmetal might be able to uncover, and the odds grew even more. It could be to his advantage to remain with the boy for a time. -Very well, Fullmetal. But I am not going to wait here for hours on end. We are going to the Library _now_.-

Ed grinned again, -Right then,- adding in his head, '_Fluffy._'

As though Scar could read his thoughts, the Ishbalan sent him a black glare before turning again and leading the way through the streets. They had barely gotten halfway to the library when an ominous rumble sounded overhead.

Ed glanced up worriedly, finding himself unable to see the moon or the stars, -That didn't sound very promising.-

Scar didn't even bother to turn his head towards the sky, but picked up the pace, eyes darting around, seeking shelter, -A summer thunderstorm. Powerful and dangerous to anyone without shelter. It will be upon the city shortly.-

True to Scar's word, within seconds a warm drizzle began to patter down upon the pair of them. It grew darker, so much that even their nocturnal eyes could barely see, and a wind began to pick up. A brilliant flash of lightning illuminated a narrow alleyway beside them, and to their great luck it contained a large pile of crates. Scar darted into the passage, closely followed by Ed, and they proceeded to search quickly for an open crate that would provide shelter from the fast worsening storm. Finally they found one that would be suitable as shelter, and they dashed inside it. It was small, and smelled strongly of old cabbage, but by now the drizzle had become an absolute downpour and the wind howled like a wild beast. Anything was better than nothing in this kind of weather. And so they sat, and Scar's pondering from earlier in the chapter caught up with itself. His reverie was broken when Fullmetal decided that he couldn't take the water soaking his fur anymore and attempted to shake it out like any regular cat. Of course, this got water on Scar, and if looks could kill, Ed would have been dead fifty times over.

Keep your rainwater to yourself,- he growled before turning his face back towards the howling storm. It was frustrating for him to be trapped anywhere, let alone in a different body and with someone he would rather kill than work together with. Staring up at the sky, he let his mind loose to wander. He sat like a statue for hours, listening to the storm rage on a few inches from his nose. When his own exhaustion brought him out of his reverie, he turned to see that Fullmetal was already curled in a corner, sleeping. Upon closer inspection, he saw that the boy seemed to be shivering from the cold and wet. With a small snort he turned and lay in the opposite corner, completely not caring. Within minutes Scar had fallen into a deep and dreamless sleep.

* * *

Al stood against the window of his and Ed's room and stared at the storm raging outside; even if his 'face' was technically expressionless, one could just see that the animated suit of armor was in distress. At least, you could if you were paying attention. Anyway, Al was worried. Very, very worried. His niisan was missing, presumed kidnapped, and now it was storming to top it all off. He and a good portion of the military stationed in the city had been searching for Ed tirelessly since he had vanished along with Scar, but with no results at all. And now the search had to be stopped until the potentially dangerous storm had moved away from the city. It was unbearable for poor Al; he and Ed were practically joined at the hip, and now he didn't know where his niisan was, or even if he was still alive. He wished he had stayed with Ed instead of going off to get reinforcements, because at least then he might be with his niisan now instead of stuck here worrying. But he was stuck here for now, and there was no getting around it. And so he stood his silent vigil by the window, waiting for the storm to pass.

* * *

**_A/N:_**_ Still don't want to work together, do they? Tch. Sillies. Wonder how long it'll take before the title of the fic will actually apply…hmmm…anyway, time to answer reviews (and what a lot of them I've gotten! Whoo!)_

_lazerducky27: I have two little sisters like that, so I had some nice models for Liz. XD I might have Al find them, but I dunno._

_Lunatic Pandora1: Yep. I felt pretty sorry for them while I was writing that._

_PhantomAlchemist: Darn right. My mom came up to my room to ask why I was laughing so hard, too…_

_Priestess kurumi inu's sister: Yes, yes they are. And I'm loving that fact. It's so much fun to write._

_RenegadeWarrior: Oh, really? I guess my idea wasn't quite as original as I had thought at first. But it's nice to know that mine stands out. Thanks!_

_Shale 101: -nodnod- That chapter was fun._

_CeruleanDragonFire13: Yep, and I want to jump into my own fic and steal them. I'm so sad. XD_

_Scar's fangurl: You're welcome. Thanks for reviewing mine._


	5. Bookworms

**_Chapter Title: _**_Bookworms_

**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Scieska_

**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!_

**_Spoilers: _**_Nope._

**_Warnings: _**_None._

**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, several certain someones would probably not have died. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP_

_**A/N: **Sorry for the wait; it took a while to organize this chapter, and I still have giant plot holes! -sweatdrop- Remember, if I don't update for over two weeks, feel free to poke my muses with cattle prods, or give me ideas (I always need those). Oh, and who watched last Saturday's episode on CN? It made me so incredibly happy (even though I had already read a summary online, it was a very confusing and incomplete summary) I was so excited that I squealed and jumped up and down like some sort of n00b fangirl (I don't normally do this). It also inspired me to write on this faster._

"regular speech"

'_thoughts_'

cat speech-

* * *

The storm raged throughout the night, and all the next morning. But just before noon it vanished as quickly as it had appeared. A bright shaft of sunlight flooded the dripping alley where Scar and Ed slept. The sudden light was enough to wake Scar, who was used to surviving on little sleep, and he rose to his feet quickly. Ed, however, was a different story. 

First, Scar nudged him with his left forepaw, -Fullmetal. Wake up.-

Ed shifted away with a disgruntled -Nergjiljgkjf-

Scar nudged him harder, -I have not the time nor the patience for this. Wake. Up.-

Ed batted at the air in Scar's general direction, -Gwaydnwana-

Scar cursed his current lack of opposable thumbs with which to drag Fullmetal outside by the neck and toss him in a puddle. He certainly wasn't desperate enough to use his mouth for this task. He pondered on what could be done to wake the stubborn sleeper, when suddenly he was hit with an idea. Curling his upper lip slightly at being forced to use such an immature tactic, he stated very loudly and clearly, -Shorty-

Ed shot up immediately, -WHO ARE YOU CALLING SO SHORT HE GETS LOST AMONG THE GRAINS OF SAND AT THE BEACH!- Then his brain remembered that he was tired and he attempted to collapse and go back to sleep. Attempted. Before he had the chance Scar cuffed him over the head. Ed rubbed his poor abused head with one paw and yawned crossly, -Why do you keep _doing_ that? I'm going to have amnesia before long.-

Scar glared back, -Because you don't listen to anything else. Now hurry up, it's nearly noon.- He turned and walked out of the box, Ed lurching after him like some sort of undead zombie.

The pair of them walked the streets, heading towards the Library as best they could. However, now that they were cats, the streets of Central were fraught with dangers. Dangers such as careless people's feet, the occasional car, stray dogs…the list just went on and on. And on top of that, everything was still dripping wet from the storm. Not very good cat weather.

After getting nearly run over, chased by a dog, and then, to top it all off, getting a kick aimed at him by a drunk exiting a nearby bar, Ed proclaimed loudly to the air, -The universe must _really_ hate me.-

Scar replied almost automatically, -It is the will of Ishbala that you be punished for your godless ways.-

Ed ignored him; it wasn't like he hadn't heard _that_ from Scar before. -I don't remember it taking this long to get to the Library. It's going to be dark by the time we get there at this rate.-

Indeed, Ed was correct. The sun had set and the moon was rising before they finally reached the entrance. But of course, they couldn't just waltz in the front door. No animals allowed, after all. So they would have to sneak in. There were no unlocked windows or convenient open-ended air vents anywhere around the sides or back of the building. Any normal way of sneaking in would require either alchemy or opposable thumbs, both of which were unavailable for the pair. So they would have to go through the front door after all, and this would be a bit more risky. But then again, they were cats. And everyone knows that when a cat wants to go somewhere, there is absolutely no way to keep them from getting there.

Now, what they did. First they slunk up the stairs under the cover of darkness, avoiding being spotted by the 24-hour guards at the bottom. Once they reached the top, Scar crouched out of sight behind one of the marble columns for a short time while Ed, being much smaller and therefore less noticable, searched around for an open window. He found one, a small window leading into the main desk area that was opened slightly. Slowly, he poked his head in and looked around and, after seeing that the librarian at the desk was busy with something, motioned to Scar with a flick of his tail and jumped in silently. Scar followed after him quickly, and they were not seen; there was some advantage to being cats after all.

After the two had gotten farther into the endless maze of shelves, Scar turned to Ed and spoke quietly, -So now what, Fullmetal? I assume that you know where you are going.-

Ed snorted, -Of course I do. The stuff we're looking for is way in the back.-

Scar sighed to himself, -Of course it is.-

After nearly half an hour of what seemed like aimless wandering throughout the mazelike library, the two reached their destination: a large row of file cabinets against the back wall. Now came the problem of opening them. But remember, they are now cats, and cats can do anything they want. However, nobody knows how they manage things like this, just that they do. So we will simply leave a gaping plot hole here for the moment, and skip ahead about 15 minutes, at which time the correct file cabinet was open, and Ed was rifling through the folders that were neatly organized inside.

With a skillful precision and speed that came with much practice, the Fullmetal Alchemist flipped through the organized folders, muttering to himself, -Let's see…Acro Alchemist…Affliction Alchemist…ah, here she is, the Altering Alchemist!- Ed carefully gripped the folder between his teeth, really wishing that he had hands, and lifted it out onto the floor. After spreading the contents out in his normal way of messy studying, he and Scar quickly began to read, searching for any way to return themselves to their proper form.

**1 Hour Later…**

Scar looked up from his reading as Ed let out a triumphant cry, -Hah! I get it now!-

Interested in what Fullmetal had discovered, Scar padded over, -What did you find?-

Ed waved a paw at what he had been reading, -It's all about her methods and specialties. I've found out what she did to us.-

Scar raised an eyebrow, -She turned us into cats. You needed to read that to figure this out?-

Ed shook his head, -No, no. I knew what she did, but not how she did it without using human transmutation or violating the laws of equivalent exchange. It's quite simple really. See, the basic skeletal and muscle structures of humans and cats are incredibly similar. The only differences are the skull shape and the lengths of the bones in various places. And equivalent exchange would allow for all the extra bone, skin, and muscle in humans to simply be transferred to places such as the tail. In my case, skin was transferred to cover my automail, but no new tissue or nerves were created and thus there was no human transmutation involved. And as for the fur, humans are actually covered in very short and fine hair that would have been enhanced with the hair on our heads to create thicker cat's fur, and any extra would cover the tail. My fur is thinner than yours because my hair also had to stretch over my automail. My skin is probably also thinner, for the same reason. It's really all very simple, when you think about it.-

Scar blinked once or twice, then shook his head distractedly. He really didn't care how it worked, only that it was alchemy and therefore against the will of Ishbala. He wanted to know how they could defeat her. -Yes, Fullmetal, but what else does she do and how can we fight her? And is it possible to be changed back?-

Ed sighed, -Yes, it is possible, but she has to be the one to do it. Anyway, other than changing people into animals, she is very proficient at manipulating her environment, which we have experienced firsthand, and also at conducting and controlling energy in the air, which you have experienced firsthand. That's pretty much all she does, though.-

Scar thought on this, -So there is nothing that we have not already seen. That makes things easier…-

At that moment, the gas lamps flared up, washing the two in bright light. The sudden change caused them to freeze up in surprise, and they gazed upon the stern-looking librarian with a kind of guilty, shocked, deer-in-headlights look. Ed recognized the small, glasses-wearing girl as Scieska as she began to talk to them, shaking her finger in reprimand.

"No cats allowed in the library! You better not have shredded anything, or knocked books of the shelves, or…hey, those are military records! Nobody is supposed to look at those…how did you get them out? And why are you here anyway? Oh, were you reading? How cute, kitty bookworms!" she got a starry look in her eyes, not noticing as them begin to inch away into the shelves to hide until they were almost away. Almost, but not quite. She swooped over and scooped the both of them up into her arms, still gushing over how adorable it was that they liked to read, "It's too bad that you can't stay here, but the rules say no animals in the library. I know! You can come home with me! I have lots of books! And the library just closed, so we can go right away!"

She swiftly swept the various papers on the floor back into their folder and replaced it in the file cabinet with ease before practically dancing through the library and out the front door. She turned for a second to lock the doors before continuing on her merry way, Ed and Scar in tow. Luckily, her house was not very far away, and they were there within 15 minutes. Once inside, she closed the door and set the two down, still talking. But they were no longer paying attention, instead looking with some amazement at the massive amount of books.

Ed, being the avid studyer that he was, was ecstatic, -So many books! She's practically got her own library!- he ran from stack to stack happily.

Scar was much calmer, and stayed by the door rather than running about. As he watched both Scieska and Ed, for lack of another word, spazzing, he sighed, '_Why must I be constantly surrounded by insanity?_'

* * *

**_A/N:_**_ Yay for bookworms! I love Scieska; she's a lot like me, except I don't have a photographic memory. I am proud of my explanation of how they could become cats. I think it would work like that, anyway. Okay, time to answer reviews! _

_Lunatic Pandora1: Ehe…I used your idea, I hope you don't mind. I had no idea what I was going to do, then you reviewed and POOF a lightbulb. Thanks._

_Scar's fangurl: Thanks for the compliment. I'm thinking of drawing a few more of some of the scenes in this story._

_Shale 101: Yep, that's always good._

_Risky-reaper: Thanks. :D I'm trying to find a way to fit Al finding them into the plot, since a lot of people seem to want to see that. Maybe when I'm done I'll write some 'side-stories-that-I-wanted-to-put-in-but-couldn't'._


	6. The Woes of Stolen Fish

**_Chapter Title:_**_ The Woes of Stolen Fish_

**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Al, Nameless Fish Stall Owner_

**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!_

**_Spoilers: _**_Nope._

**_Warnings: _**_Cursing, mild violence_

**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, there would be more of the oh-so-adorable friendship between Al and Scar. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP_

**_A/N:_**_ Sorry for the wait, school is being utterly evil. I have by now realized that my story does not fit anywhere into the canon timeline, but I will attempt to put things in perspective for you all (and for me): The 1st Branch of the Library has not yet burned down (ignore the fact that Scieska still works at the library), the 5th Laboratory incident has not happened (so therefore Al and Scar are not buddies yet), Scar has not met Leo and Rick (so they won't be in the story…sorry…), nobody knows about the homunculus (so they won't be here either) and the Ishbalan refugees are still out in the desert somewhere. And yet the thing with Marco has happened. Giant gaping plot holes everywhere, I know.Oh, and on another note, everyone say 'hi' to my two new muses, Scar and Envy!_

_Scar: Hi._

_Envy: Hi._

_They're going to get their own story detailing their adventures as muses shortly. Won't that be fun._

"regular speech"

'_thoughts_'

cat speech-

* * *

It had been a long night for Scar. Not only had he had to deal with Ed and Scieska's noise for what seemed like ages, but once they were both asleep he suffered through a terrible bout of insomnia. Darned cats and their nocturnal-ness. The horizon was beginning to turn the pinkish-grey color that signaled the approach of dawn by the time he was finally able to sleep. Again, he had no dreams.

It seemed that he had been asleep but an instant when a voice penetrated his consciousness and dragged it kicking and screaming back into awareness. -Sca-arrr…it's time to wake u-up…we have to _go_ now…-

He opened his eyes slowly to find Ed's smugly grinning face only inches from his own. He narrowed his eyes and growled, -Get away from my face.-

Ed snickered and jumped away, -Somebody's in a bad mood this morning. Whazza matter, sleepy?-

Scar only glared, refusing to be baited, before rising in one fluid motion and stretching, finding his muscles stiff after a night spent on the floor. Once that was done he looked over to Scieska's bed to see that she was still asleep. Good, that made things easier. He padded over to window near the front door. After jumping up onto the ledge, a quick push revealed that it was unlocked. He turned to Ed with a quick, -Are you coming?- before sliding out and landing on the ground outside.

Ed gave a strangled, -Hey! Wait for me!- before scrambling out after him, -Don't you ever wait?-

Scar didn't even look in Ed's direction as he answered, -No. If you want to follow me, you need to keep up.-

Ed sighed, and the unlikely pair continued down the street. It was really a very pretty morning; there were still a few puddles here and there, but other than that all traces of the storm had disappeared. The sun was shining, birds were chirping, and there were few people out on the streets this early in the morning. However, one thing put a damper on it. They were both very, very hungry. Fortunately, Scar knew exactly what to do about this. He led the way through the streets until they arrived at an open-air market, its many stalls filled with all sorts of things. They wandered through the aisles as best they could, since by now crowds were beginning to form, until at last they found what they were looking for: a fish stall. With precision timing Scar darted up, grabbed the closest fish between his teeth, and dashed back out of sight underneath a neighboring stall before the owner noticed a thing. It was much easier to do as a cat than as a tall and easily noticed person. After placing his prize down onto the cleanest bit of ground he could, he began to eat.

Ed just gaped, -You…stole…-

Scar looked up briefly, -Yes. How else did you expect me to get it?-

Ed waved an arm as he continued, -You could have paid f- oh. Never mind. Can I have some?-

The reply was succinct, -No. Get your own.-

Ed was about to protest, but saw that Scar wasn't about to change his mind or answer any more questions. So with a sigh at his growling stomach, he snuck towards the fish stall. Seeing a small tail hanging off the edge, just begging to be taken, he ran forwards and snatched it. But he was not as fortunate as Scar had been, and was spotted by the stall owner, a great hulking man who could probably have squished him under his shoe without thinking about it. And so ensued a merry (well…not so merry for Ed) chase, which lasted for a grand total of five minutes before poor Ed managed to lose the enraged stall owner in the crowd and make his way back to Scar. As the Ishbalan looked at him almost bemusedly, Ed dropped his fish and glared, -Not. One. Word.-

And so the pair ate in silence. Once they were finished, they stepped out from underneath 'their' stall…only to find themselves face-to-ankle with an angrily smug fish stall owner.

"So, 'ere're the li'l rats wot been stealin' from my stall!"

As the pair looked up, temporarily stunned, the intimidating man withdrew a wickedly sharp fish scaler from an apron pocket. Scar didn't take his eyes off of him as he quietly, yet urgently, stated, -Run. NOW!- before sprinting in the other direction. After a few feet, he turned to look back, only to see that Ed had not moved, appearing to be frozen to the spot. With a scowl, Scar turned and ran back. Nobody deserved death by a fish scaler while trapped in the body of a cat, not even Fullmetal. And so Scar got him to move out of harm's way in the only fashion he could think of at the moment: by ramming into him at full speed. It worked perfectly, but just as he knocked Ed backwards about a foot, he felt a searing stab of pain in his right shoulder. But, being himself, he managed to just grit his teeth and keep running, Ed now following behind. But the stall owner wasn't giving up that easily, and neither of them had the time to focus on anything other than getting away. The crowd was clearing to the sides as the chase progressed, blocking any way out through the stalls other than the center of the aisles, and creating a living maze of seemingly nothing but dead ends. And not only that, but as they continued their mad dash, Scar began to slow. The pain in his shoulder had escalated to where it felt like it was being stabbed with a white hot poker every time the arm moved, which was at the moment continuuously. It was only a matter of time before the man caught up enough to give him a harsh kick that sent him flying five feet until he crashed to the stone ground. Clenching his teeth in a pained snarl, he attempted to push himself up, but the stall owner wasn't finished yet. Another, harder kick sent him smashing into the side one of the wooden stalls, and a new pain in his chest alerted him to the fact that he now had at least one fractured or broken rib. Again he tried to get up, but found himself unable to; as a cat, his endurance for injury was far less than it had been when he was human. He couldn't do anything but hiss weakly as a rough hand lifted him by his neck, the tight grasp choking him.

"So, is the li'l rat regrettin' stealin' from me? Too la' fer that, now."

The man tightened his grip, cutting off Scar's breathing entirely, ignoring the shouts of protest from the crowd around him. Black spots danced in the corners of Scar's vision as he weakly fought for air. He was going to die. Here, as a cat, by a bully of a man. And there was nothing he could do.

But then, unexpectedly, the stranglehold on his throat weakened to the point where he could breathe. As he gasped for air, he vaguely heard the man shout out curses, and felt himself being swung by a waving arm. He looked down with blurred vision to see a small streak of yellow and grey fur darting around the man's ankles.

'_Fullmetal…_' his mind registered. He felt the man's weight shift, and knew what was about to happen, but could only think, '_…run…_' before the booted foot swung forewards, connecting squarely with the small furry body it was aiming for and sending it through the air to smash into the ground with a cry. Scar sighed and closed his eyes; he hated being helpless. Now they were both going to die.

"That's enough," came a familiar voice from behind, although in his current state Scar couldn't quite recognize it.

"Oh yeah? An' 'oo're you ta make meAAAAH!"

Curious, Scar opened his eyes to see the stall owner looking absolutely terrified and rather small in front of a huge, intimidating suit of armor. Alphonse Elric.

"Stop hurting them. You've done enough."

"Fine! Take the li'l rats if you want 'em so bad! Jus' don' hurt me!" the man shoved Scar into Al's hands and took off.

Al sighed sadly and hurried over to where Ed lay, seemingly unconscious, and scooped him up as well. "Poor little guys. Don't worry, I'll take care of you." Al carried them out of the market and through the streets until he reached the edge of the military HQ. There, he looked furtively from side to side and placed the two of them inside his armor before continuing to the barracks where he and Ed ususally stayed while they were in Central.

While he walked, Ed awoke with a groan, a little disoriented from the kick he had received. -Wha…happ'ned…?- he mumbled, before his eyes lit up as he remembered, -Where'sa bastard tha' kicked me…? Bite 'is ankles off…- he looked around and saw Scar, -Good…y're not…dead yet…- before dropping back into unconsciousness.

Scar had only a moment to ponder on the meaning of this statement before Al opened up his chestplate and withdrew the two of them, "Here we are, now. I'll get you fixed up. You look like you're hurt a lot worse. He must've stabbed you with something…"

As Al went to get some bandages, Scar took a look at his shoulder for the first time since it had been hurt. It was a messy stab wound, which fortunately hadn't gone deep enough to injure anything vital but would still make walking very painful. It was the worst injury; a quick prod to his side revealed that none of his ribs were fractured, but several were painfully bruised, and his windpipe seemed to be temporarily damaged. He was also covered in shallow lacerations and various bruises from the kicks he had received. He was thankful; it could have been much, much worse. Fullmetal's external injuries weren't that bad, just a shallow cut on his head, but he was definitely concussed. That could be a big problem. The sound of Al returning with medical supplies caused him to turn his head quickly, which elicited a sharp hiss of pain as his shoulder protested the movement.

"It's okay, I won't hurt you like that man did," Al said reassuringly, thinking that Scar was hissing at him, "I'll just clean this and wrap it up, now…" he soaked a small cloth in the water jar he had brought and cleaned the blood and dirt away from Scar's injury, then wrapped it tightly in a bandage, "There you go. Those are some weird marks on your arm. They remind me of…" for the first time, Al noticed the familiar scar, red eyes, and scowl of the cat. If he wasn't a suit of armor, his mouth would have dropped open. He exclaimed in a surprised voice, "_Scar_? How…when…you're a _cat_!"

Scar rolled his eyes and nodded, -Good of you to state the obvious.-

Of course, Al couldn't speak 'cat', but he knew what a nod meant, "Where's niisan? You have to know where he is!"

Scar pointed his left paw towards Ed, -Right there.-

"NIISAN!" Al swept Ed up into a hug, "I found you! But you're a cat too! How did this happen?" Of course, Ed was still knocked out so he didn't reply. Al realized this quickly and put him back down, "You're hurt, I shouldn't be moving you! Oh…what do I do…?" Al began pacing and quietly freaking out as Scar watched silently on.

* * *

**_A/N:_**_ Waaaah! I did it again! Why do I keep hurting Scar-san? WHY? -sniffle- _

_Scar: Because you have an exceedingly odd way of showing affection?_

_Envy: Because he can handle it and O'Chibi-san can't?_

_Ed (from background): HEY!_

_Scar: At least you're sorry about it and not cackling evilly like in Chapter 3._

_Envy: Hurt the chibi more!_

_Ed (from background): HEY!_

_Envy, shouldn't you be hiding from all those crazed Hughes fangirls who are now after your blood because of Episode 25?_

_Crazed Fangirls: KILL ENVY!_

_Envy: Eep! -flees-_

_Awww, you two always make me feel better. -hugs-_

_Scar: We do try._

_Now that I'm happy again, it's time to answer reviews._

_Scar's fangurl: Thanks much. I stayed up late to watch it again on Thursday, too. Sorry, but no Leo and Rick, I'm afraid. Scar hasn't met them yet. And patience, now. I wish I could spend all my time writing, but unfortunately I have school and stuff._

_Lunatic Pandora1: Yep, that it was._

_PhantomAlchemist: Darned parental controls! I feel sorry for Al too._

_lazerducky27: I'm such a huge bookworm it isn't even funny. XD_


	7. Snatched!

**_Chapter Title:_**_ Snatched!_

**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Al, Clara_

**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!_

**_Spoilers: _**_Tiny spoiler about Scar's brother._

**_Warnings: _**_Cursing_

**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, Envy would be more like he is in the manga. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP_

**_A/N:_**_ I'm sorry this took so long; school's a bitch. I can't believe that CN isn't showing any new episodes until _September_! -insert cursing here- On the plus side, now I feel absolutely no guilt whatsoever about buying subbed DVDs and getting ahead of the dub. I wonder what Scar-san sounds like in Japanese…_

"regular speech"

'_thoughts_'

cat speech-

* * *

Al was still pacing and worrying and wondering what to do. He had already suggested going to Mustang about the matter, but Scar had shaken his head vigorously at the statement. After he had been wounded and nearly killed by a simple stall owner in the market, he was certainly not about to practically give himself up to the military with a sign around his neck saying 'Please execute me; I am currently vulnerable and have no actual means of defending myself'.

The awkward silence persisted until a loud groan from Ed caused both of their heads to immediately turn towards him, -Owww…my head…- he raised his paw up to rub against it and opened his eyes, -Where am I…?- Ed's tone suddenly became worried, -Scar? Where are you-ow!- Ed had tried to stand, but the sudden movement jarred his head painfully and he was forced to lie back down.

Since Ed obviously wasn't able to see Scar, and more frantic motion would have made his concussion worse, Scar sat up and walked into his line of vision, -I am right here, Fullmetal. Your brother is here as well.-

Ed's head snapped up, then went right back down as his head made its unhappiness with this movement perfectly clear. -Al? Are you there? I can't see you from here; where are you?-

"Niisan, stop moving so much!" Al hadn't understood a word of what his brother had said, but he did see that moving was causing him pain. He leaned down to look into Ed's face and placed a hand on his back, "You have a concussion, and you'll make it worse if you keep jerking your head around like that. Where have you been, niisan? I've been worried about you…"

Ed gave a cat grin, -You worry too much, Al. I missed you too.-

Scar quietly hung back from the pair of them, not wishing to intrude. It was interesting, how strong their connection was. Much like he and his older brother's had been when he was a child, before his brother's wife had died and his brother had gone mad with his research to bring her back to life.

A voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts, and paw waved in front of his face, -Hello? Scar, are you in there?-

He quickly snapped back to reality, realizing that Ed and Al had probably tried to get his attention several times while he had been lost in the past. He answered gruffly, -What is it?-

Ed rolled his eyes, -We've only been trying to tell you for the past five minutes. Talk about zoned out, geeze. Anyway, Al is going to help us find that Clara person.-

Scar shrugged, -It can't possibly hurt.- But at the same time he sighed inwardly, '_At this rate, I'll be partners with the entire military before long._'

* * *

Once again, the pair found themselves hitching a ride inside of Al's armor while he snuck them out of HQ. They had been fairly silent for most of the trip, until Ed suddenly spoke up, -Scar…why did you push me out of the way of that psycho fish guy? I thought you wanted me dead, and you saved my life. You took the attack that had been meant to skewer me.-

Scar replied indifferently, -It was not my intent to use myself as a shield, but merely to get you to move. Because of the wound I received by saving your life, I was nearly killed.-

Ed continued, -But why would you even try to get me to move anyway? I thought you didn't care.-

Scar was silent for a moment before he answered, -Not even you deserve a death that humiliating. Now I have a question for you. Why did you come back to save my life?-

Ed shrugged, -Just returning the favor.- But in truth, that was only part of his reason. He had turned back as soon as he had noticed that Scar was no longer running next to him, but had stopped at the edge of the crowd instead of rushing right in; it would have made his human life a lot easier if he didn't have to worry about Scar any longer. But he did believe in equivalent exchange, and Scar had just saved his life so by all rights he should return the favor. But there was also the fact that simply seeing someone who seemed practically invincible most of the time be kicked around to the point of not even being able to stand, and then be picked up and be completely helpless to do anything but hang limply while he was strangled…it had hit a nerve somewhere in him. A nerve very close to the one that was hit whenever anyone called him short.

"Ok, you two can come out now," Al's voice echoed loudly inside the armor, cutting the discussion short. He opened his chestplate and lifted them out, "You're both injured, so you can ride on my shoulders if you want."

Scar nodded and climbed up to sit on Al's left shoulder, but Ed found that he was unable to climb without sharp pain in his head and so had to be lifted and placed on his perch by Al. And so the search began in earnest, and Scar soon learned just how irritating language barriers were when one was attempting to give someone instructions. The two 'cats' had to make do with pointing, limited sign language, and charades. Anyone watching would have been highly amused. Things continued on in this fashion for several hours; by this time they felt like they had combed over half of Central.

"Are you sure she's even still in the city?" Al questioned as the search continued to drag on fruitlessly.

Scar nodded in return. He was sure that turning them into cats had only been a way to temporarily incapacitate them, and that she would most likely be after their actual lives now. Not a very comforting thought, but unfortunately it turned out to be correct. The trio was searching around an empty street in an older part of the city when a very familiar figure darted up behind Al and snatched both Ed and Scar up by the scruffs of their necks. It was a good thing that Al had such fast reflexes, for he sent a kick at Clara, who was attempting to run off with the two cats, and luckily for them it just barely connected. Although it didn't cause her much damage, it was enough to send her off balance for a few seconds. Long enough for Scar to twist around and rake her arm with his claws and cause her to let go of him with a surprised cry; he landed hard on his injured shoulder, and clenched his teeth at the sudden flare of pain. But he could handle it, he had felt much worse after all, and he thanked Ishbala that he had gotten away for the moment.

Ed, however, was not so lucky, and did not manage to get loose. Although it was not for lack of trying; he was struggling with the ferocity of a tiger, but he couldn't quite reach his arms far enough to actually score a hit. At this point, with one of her targets having gotten away, the other one close to it, and a large suit of armor with amazingly good fighting skill, Clara decided that she should just take what she could get for now. Quickly dodging a punch from Al, she slammed her gloved palm into the ground and caused a wall of spikes to rise up between herself and Al, then took off…with a wildly struggling Ed in tow.

"NIISAN!" Al let out a frantic cry, trying vainly to get through the spikes to his rapidly disappearing brother using brute force.

Scar could see easily that Al's efforts, however desperate, were utterly useless. He pushed himself to his feet, hissing as his shoulder vehemently protested; he noted grimly the fresh blood seeping through the bandages, signifying that the wound had reopened upon his landing. But there were more urgent matters at hand. He limped over to Al, -You aren't going to be getting through that way. Use your head.-

Of course, Al couldn't understand a word, but the sound brought him out of his desperate but futile attack on the spikes and his more reasonable side took over, "Of course, I wasn't thinking! I can go _around_ the spikes! Just hold on a little while, niisan, I'm coming to save you!" Al took off at a sprint towards one end of the large barrier, completely forgetting about the poor Ishbalan-turned-cat.

And so Scar was left alone. It was what he had wanted, right? For annoying Fullmetal to be gone, and leave him to find Clara in peace. But he had not counted being injured in his wish, nor had he counted on the fact that Fullmetal would have saved his life, even though technically he was just returning the favor for Scar saving his life first. Scar frowned; the fact still remained that he was only alive because of Fullmetal and Alphonse's intervention. He might as well help them out while he was taking his revenge on the Altering Alchemist. So, with a sigh, he began to limp in the direction Al had taken. The sooner he was out of their debt, the better.

* * *

**_A/N:_**_ And thus, the grudging respect for which this fanfiction is named develops further! And there is actually a kinda-sorta-definite plot! Next update might be a little slow; I have final exams to study for, and I'm still working out some small but important details about the actual plot. You know, for a while I couldn't decide whether it would be Ed or Scar who was 'snatched' by Clara. I decided on Ed for two reasons: One, I think I've tortured poor Scar plenty and Ed not enough, and Two, I was slightly worried about what Clara would do to Scar based on what she did in the first chapter.  
__Scar: I can't decide what would be worse. Her killing me outright or molesting me again.  
__Exactly. Oh, and you know how I described Clara to have a Psiren-esque look and outfit? Guess what I remembered today? Psiren's name was Clara. Oops. But there is NO RELATION, okay.  
__Envy: -sarcasm- Way to do your research before designing your characters. What kind of idiot muses did you _have _before you got us?  
__Not very good ones. Anyway, time to answer all the nice reviews!_

_Lunatic Pandora1: Well, maybe not that funny…sorry…  
__Scar's fangurl: I'm sorry I'm taking so long with chapters; I have finals coming up and I have to study.  
__Anase__ the Shadow Alchemist: Happy Late Cinco de Mayo! I've been busy too.  
__lazerducky27: And then he promptly lost them again. Mean ol' fishy guy.  
__crazyanimefreak15: Nice name. :) Thanks for the compliment.  
__Shale 101: Yay! Thank you!_


	8. Sneaking

**_Chapter Title:_**_ Sneaking  
_**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Clara  
_**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!  
_**_Spoilers: _**_Nope  
_**_Warnings: _**_None, actually  
_**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, there would be a bit more detail about Scar's backstory. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP  
_**_A/N:_**_ I'm so sorry, everyone! This has taken far too long to post, I know. First I had exams, then a family reunion out in the middle of nowhere (without my laptop), then I went to Scarborough Faire with my friends, then I was working on my costume for A-Kon (I'm going as Scar-san!), and THEN I couldn't think of anything to write! Argh…so frustrating. On the plus side, I bought all 51 episodes on EBay, and they should get here by Tuesday, so I can watch Scar-san all I want! Joy!_

"regular speech"  
'_thoughts_'  
cat speech-

* * *

'_Why does Fullmetal insist on continuing to get himself into situations where I feel obliged to assist him?_' Scar thought to himself as he padded swiftly through the streets. One good thing about being a cat was that it enabled him to track Clara down by scent, and that's just what he was doing. It might not be as easy as it would have been if he had been turned into, say, a bloodhound, but it was possible. And the fact that he could, by now, immediately recognize her foul stench helped matters quite a bit. She seemed to be sticking to less traveled parts of the city, making it even easier to track her in the absence of multitudes of other people's scents. He had yet to see Alphonse, and wondered briefly if the younger Elric brother had taken a wrong turn somewhere

* * *

Clara darted through the streets and alleyways towards her hiding place, an old warehouse that had been abandoned for about a year. She smirked at Ed thrashing about, trying vainly to break out of her hold on his neck.

He yowled at her furiously, -Let me go you psycho! Put…me…DOWN!-

"Now, now," Clara's voice was mock-sweet as she slowed and opened the door to enter the warehouse, "We've arrived, so calm down, little alchemist…"

Ed, as could be expected, exploded, -WHO ARE YOU CALLING SMALLER THAN A GRAIN OF RICE?- Ed's reaction was so loud, in fact, that Scar heard it very faintly from several blocks away and, recognizing it immediately, headed directly towards the sound. But anyway, back to Ed's plight. Clara shut and locked the door quickly before strolling leisurely through the haphazard stacks of empty wooden crates until she reached another door, behind which was an old but sturdy looking staircase leading up to a small 'surveillance' office. The small amount of office furniture was filthy with dust and cobwebs, and yellowed papers covered in numbers and crabbed handwriting were strewn about carelessly, and at Clara's entry, several mice scurried for cover. Before Ed could examine the room further, he was tossed carelessly into a smaller, open-end-up crate that had been next to the door, and before he could jump out Clara had put the lid into place, effectively trapping him. It took only a few seconds for Ed to notice something very important. There were no air holes.

* * *

After Scar heard Ed shouting at Clara, he had been able to move towards the warehouse using a much more direct route than he would have taken if he had continued to use the winding scent trail. It wasn't long before he had reached it in all of its abandoned warehouse-y-ness. But, being Scar, he realized that simply dashing in, while 'heroic', would be extremely foolish. And Scar wasn't much for heroics, anyway. Things like this required a more covert approach. Some sneaking was in order.

* * *

Scar had slunk around the building, and it hadn't been long before he had discovered a broken window, one of the really big ones on the lower floor. It had been a bit difficult to get safely around the broken edges of the glass that remained in the pane, but Scar had managed well enough. Once inside, he had needed to navigate through the veritable maze of empty packing crates, muscles tensed to react as swiftly as possible in the very real possibility of attack. The silence was unnerving, and he found himself breathing as softly as he could; every fibre of his being was screaming with nervous adrenaline, and his injured shoulder throbbed. He was well aware that, much to his chagrin, if it came to a fight he would be at a severe disadvantage. In fact, as of the moment, his only advantage was surprise, and that was minimal and a contested fact anyway. The situation was simply Not Good. He sighed inwardly, '_How do I manage to get into situations like this?_'

After much wandering, he at last made his way through the crates and found the slightly ajar door that led to the staircase that led to the surveillance office where Clara and Ed were located. With more than a little trepidation, he cautiously padded up the stairs, for once thankful that he was a cat. If he had still been a human, the old stairs would no doubt have creaked and groaned loudly under his feet; it was like a fairly dependable, low tech alarm system for Clara. But, since Scar was a cat, he was able to creep up the stairs without so much as a squeak from the old stairs, and he cautiously peered through the, also slightly ajar, door into the office. Surprisingly enough, Clara didn't seem to be inside, although, he thought, wrinkling his nose in distaste, her smell was all over the place. He could also scent Ed faintly, and glanced around the room, trying to ascertain the young alchemist's location. His eyes rested upon a smallish, sealed crate…from which emanated faint scuffling sounds. Ah, there he was.

Another quick glance around the room to make sure that Clara was not there, and Scar quickly darted into the room, stopping in front of the crate containing Ed, -Fullmetal, are you still alive in there?-

The scuffling stopped abruptly, and Ed's muffled voice was heard from inside the crate, -Scar! I'm trapped in here, and I'm running out of air! Get me out!-

'_Well, this situation just got worse,_' Scar thought grimly as he replied, -And exactly how am I supposed to do that?-

There was silence for a few moments, before, -Er…I dunno?-

Scar sighed in frustration, before the 'click' of a closing door sounded from behind him. He whirled, but before he could fully register what he was seeing, he had been snatched into the air by his neck. Crimson orbs narrowed in fury as he stared into the smirking face of the last person he wanted to see.

"Well, now. What have we here?"

**_

* * *

A/N: __Blah…not only did it take forever, it was a short chapter, too. Sorry again. Anyway, if you didn't catch it, that's Clara who's got Scar-san now. Now I'm going to work on my costume, and the next chapter (which will hopefully be longer and have a shorter arrival time). Well, after I answer all the reviews I got, anyway._**

_Scar's fangurl: Yeah, finals are a pain. But they're over now, so I'll be writing more!  
__Anase__ the Shadow Alchemist: Hehehe…of course Scar-san wins that one. They are remarkably similar though…I hadn't noticed that before.  
__Basser__: You rock. You just do. I'm glad you like my writing style. :)  
__Courtney-neko: Thanks! Nice review style, it made me smile.  
__Lunatic Pandora1: Oooo, really? I can't wait to get my DVDs, then I can hear both.  
__Shale 101: Thanks. Yeah, poor Scar-san. I abuse him so much. XD  
__ILUVED: Thanks!  
__Silvertails__ Tora: It's okay; I do that all the time. Thanks for liking my story!  
__Crazyanimefreak15: I'm sorry! I had a ton to do, but now I don't have so much so I'll update faster.  
__Uniasus__: Nice name. Thanks for the compliments and the good luck. Good luck on yours! (If you haven't already taken them…)_


	9. Restoration

**_Chapter Title:_**_ Restoration  
_**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Clara  
_**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!  
_**_Spoilers: _**_Nope  
_**_Warnings: _**_Cursing, medium-ish violence  
_**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, Scar would smile, even if it was only once. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP  
_**_A/N:_**_ Haha! Not only have I now seen the entire series, but I have also read up to chapter 47 in the manga! Ph34r my l337 informed-ness! Also, I'm sad to say that…well, this story is drawing to a close. It's just one more chapter left. But never fear, for there will most definitely be a sequel!  
__Envy: We've already started bugging her with plot bunnies.  
__I don't know when it'll be posted, but there will be one._

"regular speech"  
'_thoughts_'  
cat speech-

* * *

Scar glared menacingly at the sneering face of Clara, his eyes narrowed to mere slits and his ears pressed flat against the back of his skull. She only laughed softly in response, the sound causing an irrepressible growl to rise in Scar's throat.

"Why, Scar-kun, I thought you hated State Alchemists. And here you are trying to save one's life. How noble of you," she crooned, a malicious expression on her face, and stroked one finger along the underside of his chin. He flinched away from the touch, disgust written plainly on his face, before swiftly raking his claws across the offending hand. With a cry of surprise and pain, she dropped him onto the floor and clutched her now bleeding hand tightly to her chest.

Scar had begun running as soon as his feet touched the ground; brave he was, but foolish he was certainly not, and he knew when he was outmatched. Unfortunately, in such an enclosed space there was nowhere _to_ run. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a horribly familiar bright yellow glow coming from Clara's direction, and suddenly he had an idea. He raced towards the crate where Fullmetal was trapped, hoping that this would work, hoping that Clara would not see what he was trying to do. He was in luck; Clara flung the sphere of condensed energy at him as he was in front of the crate, and it was smashed open. But the victory was a double-edged sword; although the purpose of getting Ed out of the crate was accomplished, Scar suffered a direct hit from the energy blast and was flung backwards into the wall. He landed hard on the floor, where he lay fur singed, shoulder bleeding freely, and certainly at least one rib fractured.

Ed crawled out of the wreckage of the crate, gasping and dizzy from lack of air. He looked around worriedly, having heard some of what was going on outside the crate but unable to actually see what was happening, -Scar?- he caught sight of the injured Ishbalan and ran over, -Scar! You'd better not be dead!-

Scar glared at him out of one eye, -What could you _possibly_ do to me if I was already dead?-

Ed sighed in relief, -I don't know, but I'd figure out something. But you aren't dead, so it doesn't matter right now.-

"Well, I'm terribly sorry to interrupt your little reunion, but it would seem that there are more important matters at hand, don't you think?" as Clara spoke, there was the glow of a transmutation, and two large hands rose from the floor, one holding Ed and one holding Scar, leaving only their heads free and holding them at Clara's eye level. She stalked over to the pair, stopping in front of them with a smug smirk on her face, "You know, the idea of killing the two of you as cats doesn't really seem as fun or satisfying as killing you as humans. It's so interesting to see one's expression before they die, and you don't quite get the same effect from a cat's face. Oh, but you will be needing these first, won't you?" she walked over to the desk and opened one of the drawers, pulling out…the pair's clothes. "I went to all the trouble of getting these from the military Headquarters. You should feel special; I don't normally do this for my victims. But you two _are_ exceptional, aren't you? Well, it's time to get started," she gave a soft chuckle, walking back over to the hapless pair and inscribing an altering array onto the floor beneath each of them. She then stepped back and used the circle on her glove to make the hands holding them recede back into the floor, and at the same time raise a high circular stone wall around each of them, effectively separating and trapping them. And then, the arrays beneath them glowed with a familiar yellow light.

It was just as strange a feeling as it had been when they had been turned into cats, one of shifting bones and skin, everything lengthening and rearranging. And then it was over, and they lay on the dusty floor…human again.

Scar shook his head to rid himself of the disorientation, and clenched and unclenched his hands as though to make sure they were really there. He would never take them for granted again. Several things were thrown over the wall, and he was relieved to find that they were his clothes. He pulled them on quickly and stood shakily, having to lean against the wall when he was assailed by a short bout of vertigo. But oh, it was wonderful to be in his proper form again. A loud clap and a flash of blue light brought him out of his short reverie, and with his usual frown now back in place he destroyed the wall using his right arm.

He was just in time to witness Fullmetal being thrown backwards into the wall by an alchemical energy blast from Clara. Seeing an opening, he darted forward…but his speed had slowed due to the recent species change, which she anticipated, ducking his brightly glowing arm and slamming her gloved palm into the ground, using the floor as a conductor to send a painful surge of energy through his body. It was enough to stop him for a moment long enough for her to swing around and land two vicious kicks: one in his ribs causing at least one of the injured ones to crack, and the other squarely onto his shoulder wound. The pain nearly caused him to black out, and before he could recover she had kicked his legs out from underneath him. He landed hard, and found that he was unable to get up. '_Dammit…_'

"Scar!" Ed had gotten back up from his own fall, but then again it had not been nearly as bad as Scar's.

"Worry about yourself, boy!" Clara dashed forwards to attack, and Ed attempted to flip out of the way…but, like Scar, his agility level was rather less than normal, and Clara caught him with a kick to the legs just before he landed, causing him to fall onto the ground. And before he had a chance to get up, she used the same energy surge that she had used on Scar; not having nearly as high of an endurance for pain as the Ishbalan did, Ed was now only just barely conscious.

"Well, now, that was _far_ easier than I expected it to be. Not much of a challenge, I'm afraid. But, now I've had my fun, and it's time for you both to die. I think…it'll be you first, Scar-kun," she slowly walked over to stand over his still form, and if looks could kill, Clara would have been dead in less than an instant. She withdrew a slender knife from a hidden sheath on her leg, and knelt over him, sneering, "Isn't it ironic, Scar-kun, that even the strongest man in the world can be killed so easily by a simple stab in the heart?"

As she sadistically drew out the moments until his demise with barbed speech, he thought furiously, '_Damn her…I…will…not…die…HERE!_' and with the last word, forced his right arm to move, to grab onto her ankle, and before she could react there was a crimson flash, and Clara was suddenly short one leg. She fell onto the floor next to him, and he was now able to reach her face, which he gripped tightly in his right hand.

"Your fate rests with Ishbala now," was all he said before there was another flash and Clara was no more. And with this done, Scar willingly slipped into the blissful oblivion of unconsciousness.

* * *

**_A/N:_**_ Oh man, I am _so_ sorry this took so long. I got stuck around near the beginning, and…yeah. I'm really hoping to get the last chapter out on Monday at the latest (I'm going to Japan on Tuesday!); I probably will, because I know what I want to do with it and it probably won't be all that long.  
__Scar: But finally, I'm not a cat anymore and Clara has gotten the bloody demise that she deserves!  
__Envy: Yeah, but both you and O'Chibi-san are horribly injured.  
__Geeze, I'm sorry, Scar-san. I keep hurting you. I think it probably _is_ some kind of weird way of showing affection.  
__Scar: Eh, I'll live.  
__Thanks, Scar-san. Now, time for review answering! _

_crazyanimefreak15__: Nope, and they're still not dead. Yaaaay.  
__Uniasus__: You certainly don't have to worry about Scar. And Al…well, you'll see what happened to him next chapter.  
__steph__: Thanks!  
__Anase__ the Shadow Alchemist: All hail Scar-san!  
__Scar's fangurl: Sorry to make you wait; here's the next one!  
__Lunatic Pandora1: Because it doesn't work when he's a cat.  
__The Great NeoDragon: Hehe, thank you very much. Glad you think I'm keeping Scar-san IC.  
__Night-Owl123: Here you go!  
__critical-blow__: Well…he did, and then he went and lost 'em again.  
__LadyRiona__: Yay, I'm glad you like it!  
__Darkness Shadow of Hatred: Thanks! Hehe, don't freak him out _too_ much…  
__Anasazi__ Darkmoon: Yay! Thank you!_


	10. EPILOGUE: Respect

**_Chapter Title:_**_ EPILOGUE: Respect  
_**_Characters:_**_ Scar, Ed, Al  
_**_Pairings: _**_None! I can't write romance for the life of me!  
_**_Spoilers: _**_Nope  
_**_Warnings: _**_Mild blood  
_**_Disclaimer: _**_If I owned the show, Kimbly would have died the _first_ time. Unfortunately, I don't own it. XP  
_**_A/N:_**_ Waaaaah, the last chapter! I'll miss this story! -sniffle- My first completed one. It's been a long road, and for all you reviewers who stuck with me, thank you. I love all of you to death, and I certainly hope you'll stick around through the sequel! Now I'm sure you're all more anxious to read the chapter than to hear me giving a speech, so here it is!

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_

Scar returned to consciousness slowly. He ached all over, and his shoulder was throbbing unmercifully. He allowed a small groan to escape his lips as about twenty different kinds of pain decided to make themselves known. Wait a second…lips? A slight feeling of elation rose in his chest for the first time in a long time as he remembered that he was human again. And not only that, but Clara was dead. But how long had he been out? He slowly opened his eyes to see his surroundings. He was covered in blood, both his own and Clara's, and surrounded by a widening pool of it that was flowing from her corpse. But judging by the way most of the blood had dried, it had to have been at least an hour, possibly two. He pushed himself up into a sitting position, grimacing as the dried blood that had been basically gluing his shoulder to the ground came away and opened the wound _again_. Not to mention that his ribs were exceedingly unhappy with the fact that he was moving at all. But he would live. He glanced over to see that Ed had, as could be expected from anyone, fallen unconscious. He didn't look to be in _too_ bad of a shape, so no doubt he would live as well. Then he heard shouting from outside.

"Search every building in the area until they are found!" a militant voice called out, followed by various 'yes, sir!'s.

'_Time to go_' Scar thought. He wasn't intending to let himself be seen by the military. Well, now he at least knew where Alphonse had gotten off to. They didn't seem to have entered his building yet, and he really didn't want to jump out of the window in his condition, as that would attract unnecessary attention and be rather painful besides. So he went down the stairs like a normal person, giving Ed one last look before he left. Ah, he'd let the boy go today. There was plenty of time for his promised revenge later, after all.

A short time later, a military troop discovered the room. After calling all the others back from searching with cries of "We've found him!", and sent Ed off to a hospital, they puzzled over the confusing scene. Obvious signs of a fight, the corpse of an AWOL State Alchemist, blood everywhere, and no signs of Scar anywhere. By the state of Clara's body, he had obviously been there, but did not seem to have been the one to have injured Ed. Nobody could really figure out why.

When Ed had regained consciousness, he had jolted upright and yelled "Scar!" before realizing where he was and calming down. His story had been that both he and Scar had been kidnapped by Clara, and that Scar had been able to get loose and kill her before she had killed them (it was _almost_ the truth…). Al, who had been the one to get the military out there, backed up Ed's story. The fact that they had been turned into cats was never mentioned, although two officers had a mysterious experience in which rocks flew out of nowhere to hit them in the head. Ed had seemed rather smug the morning after this incident. As time passed, everything slowly returned to normal around Central.

Meanwhile, a solitary figure leaned against an alley wall on the outskirts of town, his crimson eyes staring up at the sky. His shoulder was nearly healed, and so he was ready to begin to go about his normal business of killing State Alchemists again. Although for one State Alchemist in particular he found himself feeling a tiny bit…of a grudging respect.

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**_A/N: _**_Told you it would be a short chapter. But…holy cow, it's over. My first FMA story that I wrote is also the first that I finished. Of course, now there's the sequel, as soon as I get that all figured out.  
__Scar: And as soon as you get your scanner working there are going to be several nice pictures up on your Homepage from this story.  
__Envy: Not to mention all those plot bunnies that have been dancing around in your head like there's no tomorrow.  
__Right.__ I dunno when I'll get the sequel started, because I have all this other stuff I want to write. Anyway, before I answer reviews, I'd just like to say again to all of you who have reviewed throughout the course of this story, that I love you all and you're the best reviewers in the whole world._

_Darkness Shadow of Hatred: Hey, come back with my muse:)  
__Anasazi__ Darkmoon: You know, that's what was going through my mind as I wrote that…  
__crazyanimefreak15: Y'know, that's actually the part I got stuck on. Couldn't figure out how they would get their clothes back.  
__no__ one's friend: Yes, much easier to cuddle. And I think Scar _would_ bite…hahaha.  
__Night-Owl123: Soon enough:)  
__LadyRiona__: Go Scar! Whoohoo!  
__PhantomAlchemist__: Yay for no more parental controls! And wow, he emailed you back? Ooooooo…  
__Lunatic Pandora1: Naw, I don't think that would ever happen in a million years. :p  
__Uniasus__: Hehe, thanks. It is a very hard word to spell. _


End file.
